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Monday, 8 May 2017

MYTHIC MONDAY - EGYPT 11, NEPHTHYS

“Light and
Darkness. One cannot exist without the other. There is no true Master, without
the power of balance. ” ― Luis Marques

Nephthys (Greek: Νέφθυς)
or Nebthet or Neber-Het was a goddess in ancient Egyptian religion. A member of
the Great Ennead of Heliopolis in Egyptian mythology, she was a daughter of Nut
and Geb. Nephthys was typically paired with her sister Isis in funerary rites because of their role as protectors of the
mummy and the god Osiris and as the sister-wife of Set.

Nephthys is the
Greek form of an epithet (transliterated as Nebet-het, and Nebt-het, from
Egyptian hieroglyphs). The origin of the goddess Nephthys is unclear but the
literal translation of her name is usually given as “Lady of the House”, which
has caused some to mistakenly identify her with the notion of a “housewife”, or
as the primary lady who ruled a domestic household. This is a pervasive error
repeated in many commentaries concerning this deity. Her name means quite
specifically, “Lady of the [Temple] Enclosure”, which associates her with the
role of high priestess.

At the time of
the Fifth Dynasty Pyramid Texts, Nephthys appears as a goddess of the
Heliopolitan Ennead. She is the sister of Isis and companion of the war-like
deity, Set. As sister of Isis and especially Osiris, Nephthys is a protective
goddess who symbolises the death experience, just as Isis represented the
(re)birth experience. Nephthys was known in some ancient Egyptian temple theologies
and cosmologies as the “Useful Goddess” or the “Excellent Goddess”.

Late Ancient
Egyptian temple texts describe a goddess who represented divine assistance and
protective guardianship. Nephthys is regarded as the mother of the
funerary-deity Anubis (Inpu) in some myths. Alternatively Anubis appears as the
son of Bastet or Isis. As the primary “nursing mother” of the incarnate
Pharaonic-god, Horus, Nephthys also was considered to be the nurse of the
reigning Pharaoh himself. Though other goddesses could assume this role,
Nephthys was most usually portrayed in this function. In contrast Nephthys is
sometimes featured as a rather ferocious and dangerous divinity, capable of
incinerating the enemies of the Pharaoh with her fiery breath.

In the funerary
role, Nephthys often was depicted as a kite, or as a woman with falcon wings,
usually outstretched as a symbol of protection. Nephthys’ association with the
kite or the Egyptian hawk (and its piercing, mournful cries) evidently reminded
the ancients of the lamentations usually offered for the dead by wailing women.
In this capacity, it is easy to see how Nephthys could be associated with death
and putrefaction in the Pyramid Texts. She was, almost without fail, depicted
as crowned by the hieroglyphics signifying her name, which were a combination
of signs for the sacred temple enclosure (hwt), along with the sign for neb, or
mistress (Lady), on top of the enclosure sign.

Nephthys was
clearly viewed as a morbid-but-crucial force of heavenly transition, i.e., the
Pharaoh becomes strong for his journey to the afterlife through the
intervention of Isis and Nephthys. The same divine power could be applied later
to all of the dead, who were advised to consider Nephthys a necessary
companion. According to the Pyramid Texts, Nephthys, along with Isis, was a
force before whom demons trembled in fear, and whose magical spells were
necessary for navigating the various levels of Duat, as the region of the
afterlife was termed.

While Nephthys’
marriage to Set was a part of Egyptian mythology, it was not a part of the myth
of the murder and resurrection of Osiris. She was not paired with Set the
villain, but with Set’s other aspect, the benevolent figure who was the killer
of Apophis. This was the aspect of Set worshiped in the western oases during
the Roman period, where he is depicted with Nephthys as co-ruler. This benign
aspect of Nephthys is corroborated Nephthys’ role in assisting Isis in
gathering and mourning the dismembered portions of the body of Osiris, after
his murder by the envious Set. Nephthys also serves as the nursemaid and
watchful guardian of the infant Horus.

As a mortuary
goddess like Isis, Neith, and Serqet, Nephthys was one of the protectresses of
the Canopic jars of the Hapi. Hapi, one of the Sons of Horus, guarded the
embalmed lungs. Thus we find Nephthys endowed with the epithet, “Nephthys of
the Bed of Life”, in direct reference to her regenerative priorities on the
embalming table. In the city of Memphis, Nephthys was duly honoured with the
title “Queen of the Embalmer’s Shop”, and there associated with the
jackal-headed god Anubis as patron.

Not always lugubrious,
Nephthys was also considered a festive deity whose rites could mandate the
liberal consumption of beer. In various reliefs at Edfu, Dendera, and Behbeit,
Nephthys is depicted receiving lavish beer-offerings from the Pharaoh, which
she would “return”, using her power as a beer-goddess “that [the pharaoh] may
have joy with no hangover”...

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Welcome to Nicholas V's Blog on Blogger

I have been blogging daily on this platform for several years now. It is surprising that I have persisted as the world is changing and "microblogging" is now the norm. I blog to amuse myself, make comment on current affairs, externalise some of my creativity, keep notes on things that interest me, learn something new and to surprise myself with things that I discover about this wonderful, and sometimes crazy, world we live in.

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